A ‘Five Myths’ Topic Close to Washington Post Home

Ha ha. Fully cognizant of the new owner of the paper in which he today writes, Brookings Institution scholar Darrell M. West starts off “Five Myths About Billionaires” with a double wink:

Billionaires can be fascinating — and not just because of the fortunes they amass. They buy islands and media organizations, experiment with space travel and have larger-than-life personalities…

In addition to an embed-link to a Post article about Jeff Bezos buying the paper, West gives the guy signing his freelance check a cursory mention later on, noting the Amazon founder’s personal support of same-sex marriage. The article reminds that when the owner of a newspaper shingle is someone as well known as Bezos, it’s OK to not pro-forma “fully disclose” each time in said paper.

Funnily enough, right after Bezos took over ownership of the paper in the fall of 2013, the focus of this weekly “Five Myths” series turned to Rupert Murdoch. In that piece, NPR’s David Forkenlift insisted that Bezos’ fellow media baron was not yet “old and spent.”